Four arrested after machete-point robbery in Dhaka's Mohammadpur

Footage of the machete-wielding gang robbing a passerby in broad daylight went viral on social media

Police have arrested four people after a machete-wielding gang robbed a passerby in broad daylight in Dhaka's Mohammadpur area.

The incident took place around midday on Saturday on Bosila’s 40 Feet Road. CCTV footage of the attack later circulated widely on Facebook, prompting the police into swift action.

Assistant Commissioner Mehedi Hasan of Dhaka Metropolitan Police's Mohammadpur Zone said

The four suspects, identified by their first names as Azharul, Noman, Nasim and Jashim, were detained along with the stolen mobile phone. Police identified them as members of a local gang known as the “Mahi Group”.

“We have arrested four people along with the mobile phone that was snatched at machete-point,” Hasan said

Efforts were under way to track down other members of the gang, he added.

The video of the incident showed a young man standing by the roadside with his phone when a battery-run rickshaw pulled up nearby. Two men jumped out carrying machetes, surrounded him, and snatched his mobile phone and wallet before running back to the vehicle and fleeing the scene.

The footage quickly went viral on social media, sparking public concern about repeated daylight robberies in the Mohammadpur area.